The Family Smythe
by Laughliveloveluck
Summary: Blaine had no idea that Sebastian has a sister, let alone that his sister is dating Cooper. But when Cooper comes back home, Blaine witnesses a completely different side to Sebastian when he meets the rest of the Smythe's - a crazy, but loving, family. Story starts out with Klaine, but it will end up with Seblaine. AU S3 everything before the Big Brother episode remains the same .
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: **This will be a Seblaine story, because I love this pairing so freaking much and I think there is so much more to Sebastian's character than what we were given in season is an AU, which takes place after On My Way – it's sort of a spin on the Big Brother episode.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything.

* * *

There were few things in life as satisfying as a tall cup of caramel frappuccino, served up in the right atmosphere, and with the right friends to enjoy it with. It was like the feeling he got after being out in the snow for hours and then drinking a hot apple cider, or finding a fifty dollar bill in the back pocket of an old pair of jeans. It made his day seem a bit less mundane. And _The Lima Bean _was what Blaine Anderson, a self-professed coffee snob with no plans to reform in the foreseeable future, considered to be his own personal slice of heaven. It was even better than the hot apple cider and fifty dollar bill, all rolled into one. Granted, it was the only café in town and was usually always crowded, but it had the best coffee in the state.

But that still didn't explain why that guy had brought his screaming child in. The child's face was positively red as she screamed her head off, for which her father offered no apologies whatsoever.

"Okay, seriously?" Kurt said, rolling his eyes dramatically in the direction of the still heaving line-up. "That guy should do everyone else a favor, take his kid and leave. Kids under the age of three should be banned from cafes and restaurants."

"Tell me about it," Rachel agreed ruefully. "The whole point of a café is to _relax_."

Kurt and Rachel certainly looked relaxed, sipping their frothy cappuccinos and trading weekend gossip. The group of Gleeks had met up for their bi-weekly coffee date, and was currently seated around a circular table near the entrance of the café.

"Speaking of relaxation…I must say that I feel completely and wonderfully relaxed now that the smarmy meerkat bastard is M.I.A." Kurt confessed, oblivious to the frown marring Blaine's face.

The weeks following Regional's had been a bit of a blur between celebrations and rehearsals for Nationals (as per Rachel's request). Despite his chaotic schedule, Blaine had managed to see or spend time with almost everyone. Everyone except for one, Sebastian Smythe. After placing first at Regional's, the first thing he had wanted to do was see Sebastian and find out if his apology had been sincere. According to Thad, however, Sebastian had left almost immediately after the competition. Day after day went by, and so far none of the Warbler's has seen or heard from Sebastian. In fact, it was beginning to worry them that Sebastian had seemingly fallen off the face of the Earth.

But of course, Kurt was practically giddy with excitement over Sebastian's disappearance. He refused to accept the fact that Blaine had decided to forgive him.

"Guys, I'm going to go grab a refill." Blaine announced, not wanting to stick around to hear Kurt's tirade over the "meerkat."

"It's a good thing you're handsome and I love you," Kurt replied, giving him a quick kiss on top of his gelled hair. "Otherwise I would have to reconsider dating a sugar-crazy, caffeine-addicted person like yourself."

"Yeah, yeah," Blaine muttered, walking away and making his way to the back of the line.

* * *

A full five minutes went by and Blaine was still stuck in the same position in the line-up. Blaine had never seen it this busy at _The Lima Bean_. Sure, it tended to get crowded around the holiday seasons and during school breaks, but today was neither of the two. It probably had to do with guy at the counter who was trying to juggle a drink tray, a plate of cookies, a screaming child, and his wallet all at the same time.

He couldn't see the guy with the child up close, but from afar he looked to be about Cooper's height. He had smooth, dark hair like Cooper, too, and a stylish black leather jacket that looked suspiciously like something Cooper owned. But…no, it couldn't be Cooper. Cooper was off acting in Los Angeles, and Cooper definitely would not have a screaming child resting on his hip. Still, it made Blaine think of his big brother, and that caused an ache to form in his heart as he thought of the last time they'd seen each other. It had been over two years.

"You're a little diva in the making, you know that?" The young man at the counter's voice carried over the crowd, causing Blaine to freeze up. He knew that voice. He knew it.

Blaine's heart stopped, the realization hitting him like a fresh blow to the gut.

"Cooper?" he croaked, loud enough to draw the attention of people standing in line ahead of him. And then, ever so slowly, he saw the young man turn around. Clear blue eyes, which Blaine would have recognized anywhere, met his. Cooper's lips spread into a megawatt smile as he carelessly shoved his wallet into the back pocket of his jeans and then weaved through the crowd.

Blaine was in absolute shock at the sight of his big brother standing in _The Lima Bean_ of all places with a child on his hip. It was nine kinds of crazy. The child was cute – although adorable, beautiful, and stunning were probably more accurate words to describe the sheer perfection of the sweet, cherub-faced little girl. The child looked no older than three and was downright mesmerizing with her sea green eyes and her long, curly blonde hair that hung in pigtails with pink bows at the end. The girl didn't seem to resemble Cooper, but yet she was nuzzling her face against his big brother's neck. _What. The. FUCK? _

"Hey Squirt," Cooper said, yanking Blaine away from his thoughts. "Long time no see, little brother."

And apparently, that was all he was going to offer up. The café had gone awkwardly silent when Blaine had called out Cooper's name, but slowly chatter recommenced, and Blaine stalked several steps towards his brother.

"What the hell are you doing here and who the hell is the kid?" Blaine questioned.

"I came home for a visit. I've missed you, kiddo." Cooper replied, his smile never wavering.

Blaine tilted his head significantly in the child's direction, his eyebrows raising in question.

"Right," Cooper said, taking a deep breath. "This is Isabella. My girlfriend's niece. Oh, by the way, I have a girlfriend named Olivia."

Blaine just stared at him blankly.

"My girlfriend's from Westerville, and she wanted me to finally meet her family so we decided to make a joint trip back home. Our flight got in late last night, so we crashed at her family's place." Cooper explained to a still silent Blaine. "I _was_ planning to surprise you later on this evening, but you beat me to the punch. Surprise!" Cooper cried in mock exclamation.

* * *

Cooper had a girlfriend. Cooper had a serious girlfriend. Cooper was meeting his girlfriend's family. Cooper was holding his girlfriend's niece protectively in his arms. Cooper – his flakey, playboy of an older brother – was apparently in loving and committed relationship. Nothing seemed to make sense anymore. A million and one different thoughts rushed through Blaine's head, starting with _what the hell? _and ending with _what the fuck? _

Blaine found that he couldn't speak. Between wanting to choke his big brother, bombard him with questions, and wanting to tackle him in a hug – between all of that, Blaine was frozen in place and at a complete loss for what to do or say. Where did he start?

It was Kurt who broke him out of his trance-like state.

"B?" Kurt asked, having snuck up behind him at some point, while throwing an accusatory glare in Cooper's direction. "Is everything okay? You've been gone for awhile, Rachel had to leave for her dance class."

"Kurt, this is my big brother Cooper," Blaine said, gesturing towards Cooper. "Cooper, this is my boyfriend Kurt."

Kurt relaxed immediately and he extended his hand toward Cooper.

"Hey," Cooper said, his megawatt smile returning as he shook Kurt's hand.

"Is that your daughter? Blaine never mentioned a niece to me…" Kurt asked Cooper, feeling hurt that he had been left in the dark.

"Nope, this rugrat belongs to my girlfriend's brother." Cooper explained. "But in a couple of months I will be her uncle…hopefully. Liv has to say yes first. Isn't that right, Bella?"

"Unca Coop!" The child exclaimed happily, as she attempted to say _uncle_.

The surprises just keep coming – from finding out his big brother was in town, in a serious relationship with a girl, was meeting said girl's family, to finding out that he was apparently going to propose to her. Blaine really didn't know how much more surprises he could take today.

Kurt eyed both brothers suspiciously, sensing the tension in the air.

"Blaine says it's been a while," Kurt said pointedly.

"Two years," Cooper replied, grinding his teeth slightly with irritation and tightening his grip on the little girl in his arms. He just met Kurt and he already had the urge to punch him.

"I want daddy!" The child suddenly cried out, her cheeks dimpling as she attempted a megawatt smile of her own.

It was then that Blaine noticed that Cooper was holding a drink tray, which was holding 4 cups of untouched coffee.

"Is your girlfriend and her brother here? Can I meet her?" Blaine asked curiously. Not only did he want to meet the girl who had managed to tame his Lothario of a brother, but he also really wanted to meet the father of this precious little girl.

"No, neither of them are here, they're most likely still dead asleep. I decided to go on a coffee run before they woke up because her family pretty much runs on caffeine and sugar from Sunday evenings to Friday mornings. Trust me, bro, I do _not _want to suffer the consequences from their caffeine withdrawals." Cooper shuddered; remembering the last time Liv went a day without her usual drink – a venti mocha frappuccino light. It was honestly worse than when she was pms-ing.

"I think I might just love her and her family already!" Blaine said jokingly, causing Cooper to chuckle.

Kurt watched the brothers interact silently. He honestly felt awkward, and felt, as though he didn't belong in this conversation. Cooper had just waltzed back into Blaine's life and it seemed like he was already stealing all of Blaine's time. Kurt didn't like it one bit, but he couldn't necessarily voice his opinion out loud at this moment.

"Hopefully you will." Cooper said, hoping that everything would work out for the best. He felt bad that he was keeping so many things from his brother, but he had no ideas how Blaine would react to the truth. It didn't help that the once solid relationship between the two brothers had become somewhat strained over the past two years, mostly due to living miles apart from each other. Cooper sincerely hoped he could fix that while he was back home. He missed the tight bond he used to have with his baby brother.

"Since surprising you is no longer an option, why don't you come with me back to Westerville to meet Liv and the rest of her family? You can stay for dinner and you can even sleepover if it gets too late. It's your choice." Cooper told Blaine, knowing that Liv wouldn't mind at all.

"Won't it be kind of cramped at her house with you already staying there?" Blaine wondered. He had no if Liv came from a small or big family, but he was assuming that it would be a bit stressful having two people stay over her house at once.

"Trust me Squirt, the last thing you need to worry about is a lack of space." Cooper replied honestly.

"Okay, then." Blaine agreed. "Let me just call mom and dad and let them know. You know mom's going to be pissed that you didn't see her within 24 hours of your homecoming, right?"

"Actually, mom and dad already know about it. I called and told them last week about what I was planning. Mom was pretty pissed off, but I assured her that Liv and I would stay with you guys for next week." Cooper admitted.

"Okay, but can we drop by the house first? I need to pick up some clothes and my cell phone charger if I'm going to spend the night at your girlfriend's house." Blaine asked Cooper.

"Of course, that's not a problem at all." Cooper said. "Kurt, would you like to come with us as well?" Cooper asked Kurt merely out of politeness.

At the mention of Kurt's name, guilt immediately flooded through Blaine and coursed through his veins. With everything going on with his brother he had completely forgotten about Kurt, who was still standing next to them. It wasn't the first time this had happened either. Lately, Blaine had been feeling very disconnected from Kurt and he had to physically remind himself of why he had fallen in love with Kurt in the first place.

"Unfortunately, I can't join you two seeing as I already have plans that I made with my dad, but thanks for the invite Cooper." Kurt said, hating the fact that he wouldn't be seeing Blaine for the next few days.

Cooper gave his brother privacy to say goodbye to Kurt and headed towards his car with Bella.

"What do you think baby Smythe? Do you think your daddy and Blainey are going to be able to get along?" Cooper cooed softly as he buckled Bella into her car seat. Bella smiled at the mention of "daddy" and started clapping her hands happily.

Cooped prayed to God, which was quite unusual considering the fact that he was not a particularly religious man, that everything would work out. He was really nervous that as soon as Blaine knew just _who_ Liv was, everything would blow up in his face and he would be left with a mess.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: **Thanks so much for all the reviews and follows! I'm so glad you guys are enjoying my story so far!

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything.

"You're freaking out."

"The real question is, why _aren't _you freaking out?"

"Probably because Cooper left a note on the fridge saying that he went to go get us coffee and took Bella with him."

"H-h-he did? Oh…"

"Nice to see you're still an overprotective dad, Sebby. I pity the poor boy who wants to date Bella when she gets older!" Cayleigh Sinclair-Smythe commented as she leaned against the doorway after hearing the conversation between her two siblings-in-law, Olivia and Sebastian.

"Some things are never going to change, Cay, and there won't be any boys for you to be pity. As a dad who is against my daughter dating, I already have a plan for any future suitors," Sebastian said and smiled slyly. "I'm going to shoot the first one and then the word will spread." Of course he meant it as a joke, but the thought of his daughter dating terrified him.

Cayleigh and Liv rolled their eyes simultaneously at Sebastian's "plan," and laughed at the thought of him trying to scare boys away from Bella.

"So when Coop gets back do I get to finally meet the much-talked-about Blaine 'Sex on a Stick' Anderson?" Cayleigh asked curiously. She'd heard all about this Blaine Anderson from her husband Tyler, the older brother to both Olivia and Sebastian. She knew all about Sebastian's crush on the younger Anderson as well.

"I think Cooper wanted to swing by his house later on tonight to surprise Blaine." Liv replied as she kept an eye on her brother. On the surface Sebastian was controlled and composed, but she could see him tensing up, resisting the pain and regret that she knew by now was seizing him in cyclic waves. She placed a hand on his shoulder as an attempt to offer him some reassurance and comfort.

Sebastian rarely showed anybody his softer side, but when he was at home with his family he was a completely different person. He loved his big brother and his big sister more than anything…except his daughter Isabella. Sebastian's daughter was his whole world, his darling little girl was proof that he could actually do something right.

"Okay, well in that case I'm going to go back to bed. Try to keep it down, you guys, you know how grumpy Ty gets when we wake him up too early." Cayleigh asked them politely, knowing that they both would understand. For Tyler, anything before two p.m. on a weekend was way too early.

"Sure." Liv replied, smiling. "Go make sure Ty is still sleeping like a baby."

Liv waited until Cayleigh left before she pulled Sebastian into the living room to talk in some privacy. She took her brother's hands into hers, pulling on his hand and making him sit down on the couch next to her, and looked at Sebastian with a hint of concern. "You still have feelings for him, don't you?" She questioned, already knowing the answer.

"No…"

"Seb, you might be an award winning liar, but I'm your sister! I'm your better half, or at the very least, I'm your other half." Liv joked, trying to be lighthearted.

Sebastian laughed lightly and looked to Liv. He knew he couldn't lie to his sister, Liv could see right through him, and he couldn't help but acknowledge the truth in what she was saying. Ever since they were little, Liv had been Sebastian's rock in a stormy, confusing world. His sanity, even if she did drive him insane sometimes.

When he was 15, Sebastian came out of the closet. He had been physically and verbally bullied badly for the past year. His sister was the first person he told. Liv was also the first person Sebastian told when found out that he was going to be a father at 14. He was probably more nervous to tell her than anyone else but once he'd confided in his sister, Sebastian knew he could break the news to his big brother. Tyler, who was nine years older than Sebastian and four years older than Liv, was more of a father to them than their actual father.

"It doesn't matter if I still like him because he will never like me back. He hates me and he has a boyfriend, I already lost my chance." Sebastian admitted to his sister.

"Of course it matters, Seb. And I thought after the whole Karofsky incident that Blaine kind-of-sort-of forgave you?" Liv asked, hating that she had to bring the horrid past back to light. If Sebastian had stayed at his old school, it could have easily been him in the closet trying to hang himself. It almost was… She shuddered, that thought alone terrified her to no end. Sebastian was her baby brother. She was so protective of him. She was so proud that he had overcome severe hardship and was finally getting back to himself. She loved him more than anything. She couldn't imagine life without him, ever.

"Blaine forgave me, but I'm still nowhere near being his favorite person in the world."

"Well, in the wise words of Justin Bieber: "never say never!" Liv said, causing Sebastian to roll his eyes dramatically and fight back a smile. Only his sister would quote a teenybopper like Justin Bieber.

"Yeah, okay," he said sarcastically. "Whatever you say, Liv."

Liv grinned at that statement.

"That's right, Sebby. You know deep down that I'm always right." Liv giggled.

"Love you, loser." Sebastian said playfully to his sister, and earned a soft, friendly punch on the arm.

"Love you too, jerk." She said, sticking her tongue out at him, but smiling nevertheless.

"You really love her, don't you?" Blaine asked, his voice not quite stunned, but more in awe of what had apparently transpired over the last few years.

"Yeah, I do." Cooper replied sincerely. "As corny as it sounds, she's the part of me that I didn't know I was missing, the part of me that I couldn't appreciate until it was there. She completes me, completely." Cooper's face lit up as he talked, and watching him, Blaine felt something stir in his chest. He wanted the kind of love that made you give your life freely. The intense, burning, aching need to protect kind of love. He wanted the kind of love that his brother obviously shared with his girlfriend.

"So, have mom and dad met Liv yet?" Blaine asked, curious to hear Cooper's answer.

"Yes, briefly, but she made a good enough impression for dad to wonder what she saw in me." Cooper admitted with a small chuckle.

"I'll bet that went over well with mom." Blaine said with a twinkle in his hazel eyes.

"Luckily, dad was smart enough to tell me that when mom wasn't within earshot." Cooper replied, smiling fondly at the memory.

As Blaine stared out the window, he noticed that Cooper had made a turn onto Caledonia Drive – a gated community with fancy, near-identical McMansions in manicured garden settings. "Your girlfriend lives here?" Blaine asked incredulously as they waited for the gates to open. Cooper nodded as he pulled in.

"Wow, that's practically a castle! Her family must be pretty well off. Do many people live here, or is she pretty much alone most of the time?" Blaine wondered out loud, eyes trained on the mansion, which seemed to be getting bigger and bigger.

"Most of the time, its just Liv's siblings and her sister-in-law that live here." Cooper replied as he parked the car and got out. "Are you going to help me out or not?" He asked Blaine as he tried to hold a now sleeping Bella in his arms and fold the car seat carrier at the same time. Blaine snapped back to reality, then, realizing that Cooper was waiting for him and grabbed his duffel bag. He stepped out of Cooper's SUV and took in the luxurious surroundings. Bellmen and parking attendants dressed in elegant suits and ties were standing guard outside, waiting to tend to the needs and whims of the estate's guests. Cooper politely declined their help, saying that he and Blaine would be able to escort themselves into the house, but he did ask if they could put the coffees in the microwave (because during the short trip between _The Lima Bean _and Liv's home the drinks had already become lukewarm).

"I think they might still be sleeping." Cooper informed Blaine as the two approached the main entrance to the house. Cooper moved Bella to his side, tucking her head in the hollow of his shoulder and neck, so that he could open the door without waking her up.

"I come bearing coffee." Cooper called out as he stepped into the foyer. Before Blaine could take in the grand surroundings, a girl came running down the hall towards them, throwing her arms around Cooper and Bella.

"You're back." The bubbly girl with golden blonde hair and sparkling green eyes announced cheerily. She gripped the back of Cooper's leather jacket tightly. " Did I mention how much I missed you this morning?" She pouted as his arms pulled her even closer to his chest.

"Not as much as I missed you, babe." Cooper grinned, pulling away just enough to kiss her lips softly.

"Uggghhh, did someone say coffee?" A drowsy male voice asked causing Cooper and the blonde haired girl, whom Blaine was assuming to be Cooper's girlfriend, to break from their kiss. A guy with chestnut brown hair and amber eyes entered the room carrying a girl with long, straight brown hair on his back 'piggyback' style. Both the guy and the girl looked to be in their early-to-mid-twenties.

"Well, well, well. Look what the cat dragged in." Cooper greeted the two newcomers to the group forming in the foyer.

"Blaine, I'd like to introduce you to my girlfriend Liv." Cooper said, tilting his head towards the girl whose arm was wrapped around his midriff. A genuine smile spread across her features as she untangled herself from his arms and pulled Blaine into a hug. "It's so good to finally put a face to the name!" Liv all but squealed.

"And this is her older brother, Tyler, and his wife, Cayleigh." Cooper said once Liv released him from the hug, gesturing in the direction of the guy carrying the girl. Cayleigh slipped down her husband's back and went to greet Blaine with a hug.

"Nice to meet you, bro." Tyler said as he joined his wife in hugging Blaine.

"It's nice to meet you too." Blaine said with a smile, and then added after the hug, "By the way, you daughter is adorable." Assuming that Tyler and Cayleigh were the parents of Bella.

Tyler and Cayleigh exchanged confused looks, while Liv, who was once again pressed against Cooper's side, elbowed her boyfriend for not filling his brother in. "You should have been a bit more straightforward with him." She chastised her boyfriend, who just shrugged helplessly.

Cayleigh tried to correct him, but before she could explain that Bella was her niece and _not _her daughter, Sebastian came walking into the foyer.

"Coop, let me know in advance before you take my daughter out for breakfast. I nearly had a..." Sebastian trailed off when he noticed Blaine. He had not been expecting or prepared for this in the slightest. Blaine wasn't supposed to be here for another day or two. "Hey Blaine. Long time no see, huh?" He said with all the confidence and charm he could muster.

Blaine stood there, dumbfounded, with his mouth hanging open for a second. The room was filled with an awkward and tense atmosphere. No one dare to make a sound. Until the small girl in Cooper's arms made a small sound as the child awoke. The toddler blinked, looking around uncertainly, then smiling as she spotted her father.

"Daddy!" The toddler chirped happily and reached forward with her arms.

"There's my princess," Sebastian cooed as he lifted his daughter up into his arms. Bella snuggled her face against his chest and he kissed the top of her curly blonde hair tenderly.

Blaine's eyes widened at the scene in front of him. He knew he wouldn't soon forget the sight of Sebastian cradling a clingy, needy, yet visibly happy two year-old little girl as she nuzzled into him. Seeing how naturally the child pressed into him, seeking reassurance from Sebastian's strong presence surprised him. It was as if they'd spent their whole lives together, as if she depended on him and _he was there for her_…it was both breathtaking and mind-boggling.

"Judging by the look on your face I'm guessing you haven't been fully informed on the situation." Liv said when she realized that nobody was jumping at the chance to fill Blaine in. "Coop introduced me as Liv, which is the nickname I go by, but technically speaking my name is Olivia Noelle Smythe." Cooper tightened his grip around her waist in an unspoken gesture of support.

"Since we're being technical, my name is Tyler James Smythe," Tyler added in. "And my wifey is Cayleigh Sinclair-Smythe." He said affectionately, smirking when she blushed prettily under his heated gaze.

"Wait…so…you're…" Blaine struggled to finish the sentence as he processed this new information.

"We're Sebastian's family." Cayleigh finished for him.

"Okay, since we're caring and sharing…" Sebastian began, deciding he might as well get it over with. "Bella…well, she's…well…she's my daughter."

And then Blaine's world went black.

**AN2: **I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to review, thanks! Also, just in case any of you are confused about my new characters:

Tyler Smythe (Sebastian's brother) – 26

Cayleigh Sinclair-Smythe (Tyler's wife/Sebastian's sister-in-law) – 26

Olivia Smythe (Sebastian's sister) – 22

Since Cooper's age was never mentioned in the show, he's the same age as Liv (22)

Sebastian and Blaine are both 17 years old and juniors

Isabella Smythe (Sebastian's daughter) – 2


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: **The reviews for this fic have been wonderful! Thank you to everyone who took the time not only to read, but also to review and/or follow this story! Also, thank you to **little miss mysterious **for pointing out a mistake I made in the previous chapter. I meant to write that Sebastian came out as gay at 15 and he became a parent at 14. I hope this clears any confusion anyone had, and I have corrected/fixed this mistake in Chapter 2. Also, this story takes place during April of Blaine and Sebastian's junior year.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything.

* * *

"I told you that's what was going to happen," were the first words Blaine heard when he finally regained consciousness. "You should have given him a heads-up, Coop!"" he heard a familiar voice say, but that couldn't possibly be right, could it? Cooper was in L.A.

He started to sit up, but stopped as a wave of dizziness washed over him.

"Whoa," Cooper said, taking hold of his arm as he almost fell back down. "Are you okay, bro?" Blaine opened his eyes slightly and looked up at the two people hovering over him, eyes still glassy from just waking up as he slowly pieced together where he was and recalling what had happened earlier.

Cooper, who he suddenly remembered was back in town for the next two weeks, was dating Liv. Liv, as in Olivia, as in Sebastian Smythe's sister. The very same Sebastian who had apparently fathered a child

"I'm all right." Blaine managed to say.

Although truth be told, he was having a little trouble grasping everything that had occurred in the time span of a few hours.

"Are you sure?" Cooper asked him, anxiety plainly heard in his voice.

Someone must have carried him to one of the mansions many bedrooms and laid him down to rest. Liv and Cooper were sitting on either side of the bed, facing him, their eyes warm and concerned.

"I'm perfectly peachy." Blaine replied icily, glaring at his brother, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Cooper sighed at his reply, but refrained from jumping to defend himself. Blaine had every right to be angry with him. He had, after all, kept him in the dark about one too many things.

"Blaine…I'm so sorry." Liv apologized, her eyes unexpectedly filling with tears. Both boys stared at her for a moment, stunned. Then Cooper closed the gap between them and stroked her cheek with the back of his hand. "Oh, baby, this is all my fault." Cooper said, anguished, as if her own turmoil was affecting him as well.

Blaine softened immediately at the sight of Liv tearing up. He was frustrated with his brother, but he certainly didn't want Liv to feel responsible for the situation.

"Cooper's right, Liv, this _is _all his fault." Blaine said jokingly. Liv smiled softly, which in turn made Cooper smile.

"For once, the squirt is right." Cooper chuckled. "But honestly, I owe both of you an apology," he started. "Blaine, I should have filled you in at the get-go. And Liv, I didn't mean to stress you out with this."

"Thanks, you guys. I appreciate it." Liv said as she leaned back against Cooper's chest, slightly calmer now, and smiled brightly. "And Blaine, on behalf of my siblings, I'm sorry that today has been one surprise after another."

"Don't worry about it, I'm just…shocked." Blaine said, and then added, "Speaking of your siblings, where's Sebastian?"

"Bas is in Bella's room, she roped him into playing Pretty Pretty Princess with her."

"Sebastian?" He repeated incredulously, like that was the weirdest thing he'd ever heard.

"That little girl has him wrapped around not one, but all ten of her pretty little fingers…and Bas is just fine with that." Liv told him, unable to contain the smile in her voice or on her face.

Cooper noticed the look on his brother's face; he had that spaced-out look of a man lost in deep thought.

"You should talk to him," Cooper encouraged. "For what it's worth, I don't think Sebastian had any idea that you were coming here today."

Blaine took a moment to consider Cooper's words. It sounded like good advice – good enough, at least, to follow. He wanted to talk to Sebastian. He knew that he had to, no needed to, talk to him. For some reason, however, he felt strangely nervous about talking to Sebastian. There was a twisting in his stomach, and it felt as though a thousand butterflies with razor blade wings were fluttering around his stomach.

"Okay," Blaine agreed, despite a ghost of wariness in his posture. "I'll go talk to Sebastian."

* * *

By the time Blaine managed to find his way to Bella's room, it seemed as though Sebastian and Bella had already finished playing the game. The evidence that the game had been played in the first place, however, still remained.

It took all of his willpower to not burst into uncontrollable peals of laughter right then and there. Five rings adorned Sebastian's right hand, a single blue earring dangled from his left ear, and a pink plastic necklace hung around his neck. Bella, it seemed, had changed outfits while he had had been unconscious. She was wearing a hot pink tutu with zebra leggings underneath, neon green legwarmers, and a pair of blinged out converse sneakers. Her shirt read "I 3 Daddy," and she was also covered in an assortment of plastic jewelry. They made a pretty hilarious sight, actually.

"Aw, Sebastian you look like a pretty pretty princess." Blaine said in a sing-song tone, causing the father-daughter pair to turn and look at him.

"Hey, Killer." Sebastian greeted with his usual easy grin. "What would it take to get you to forget you ever saw this?"

"Nope, not going to happen. This is too priceless to pass up!" Blaine said as he entered the room.

Bella's room was ridiculously large, but it was the epitome of a little girl's paradise. The walls were painted a light pink and had silhouettes of ballet dancers on them. She had a huge bay window with long glass panes and a cushioned window seat. There was a fully furnished four-story dollhouse in one corner of the room, a mini stage in another, and mountains of dolls and stuffed animals scattered throughout the room. She had an enormous princess castle bed that included a painted forest mural on the castle part of the bed, a grand staircase up one side and a slide down the other. To the side of her bed she had a bookshelf packed with brightly printed children's books and there was a large flat screen television mounted on the wall directly across from her bed.

"Unfortunately, that's what I thought you would say." Sebastian moved from the chair onto the floor, and pulled Bella into his lap with little effort. Cuddling and holding his daughter had become second nature to him, as natural and necessary as breathing.

Blaine sat on the floor across from Sebastian, cross-legged.

Bella studied Blaine and recognized him from earlier. She leaned in close to her dad and whispered behind her hand, but it was loud enough for Blaine to hear. "Daddy, who's that?" She asked, pointing towards Blaine.

"That is Cooper's younger brother, he used to go to the same school that I go to. His name is Blaine." Sebastian explained patiently as he reached his hand up to straighten the pink bow that held her blonde ringlet curls in a French braid. "Why don't you introduce yourself to him?"

Bella looked hesitantly at her dad, but when he gave her an encouraging smile, the little girl looked up at Blaine. "Hi," she said and gave him a shy smile, which he returned. "I'm Isabella Victoria Grace Smythe."

"It's great to meet you, Miss Isabella Victoria Grace Smythe. My name is Blaine." Blaine said, and threw a quizzical look to Sebastian. He was a bit surprised that she introduced herself by her full name, rather than just her first name or nickname.

"She insists on being called by her full name. Only people she knows can call her Bella." Sebastian explained.

He raised his eyebrows, "So I need to ask permission from a nearly-three-year-old to call her Bella?"

"Yes." Sebastian said without missing a beat. "She's pretty strict when it comes to certain things. She gets that from her mommy, right Bella?"

"Mommy was just like me!" Bella exclaimed, repeating the words she had heard so many times.

Blaine felt his heart go cold. _Was? _He looked over at Sebastian, who was considerably paler than usual.

"Princess, why don't you go play with Aunt Cay and Uncle Ty? I bet if you give them the puppy dog eyes they'll watch _The Little Mermaid _with you." Sebastian suggested sweetly, though he knew that he had sealed the deal with the mention of her favorite Disney movie.

She absolutely loved _The Little Mermaid_, and she would always try to reenact the scene where Ariel lost her voice.

"Okay!" Bella beamed, and then ran off to go find her aunt and uncle.

There was a moment of awkward silence before Blaine spoke up. "I understand completely if you don't want to talk about it with me, Sebas-" Blaine started to say, but Sebastian cut him off before he could finish.

"Her mother died six weeks after giving birth to her." Sebastian blurted out before he had a chance to realize what he'd just said; he even shocked himself. This was the first time he was opening up about this to someone other than his siblings.

"I'm so sorry," Blaine said.

"I never…she, Bella that is, was an accident," Sebastian found himself admitting. Then he was quick to add, "Not that I would EVER tell her that. She is _so_ wanted and loved, it's just that we hadn't exactly planned her. I mean, we were only fourteen at the time."

"Did you…" Blaine stammered. "Did you already know that you were…you know?"

Sebastian understood what Blaine was trying to ask and nodded. "Nobody knew, of course, mostly because I wasn't ready to admit it to myself yet. Looking back on it all now, in hindsight, I think Hadley must have known that I was gay. She was the only best friend I'd ever had in my life and she was good at picking up on the signs of others behavior."

"How did she die?" Blaine asked in barely a whisper.

"Hadley was diagnosed with leukemia when she was five years old, but she had been in remission until the summer before eighth grade. At first we tried to act as if nothing was wrong, but…" Sebastian paused and looked down at his hands, fidgeting with the sleeve of his sweatshirt. "…But she was slowly dying, and there wasn't a thing we could do about it. One random Friday night when the two of us were hanging out, Hadley was being abnormally quiet, which freaked me out. When I asked her what was wrong she told me that she needed me to do her a favor…she, uhm," he cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his neck, "she basically told me that she didn't want to die a virgin and that she trusted me to be the one to give herself to. So even though neither one of us were _in_ love with each other, we agreed to lose our virginities to one another. That one time was all it took, apparently, because nine months later Bella was born and then six weeks after that Hadley passed away."

By the time he finished talking, Sebastian was wiping tears away from his eyes. He hadn't even realized he was crying. He felt somewhat relieved that he had left out all the crap involving his parents and Hadley's parents, because otherwise he would have certainly opened up a floodgate of emotions and memories that he had held in check for years.

Blaine didn't know what to say, he sat there shocked, and trying to comprehend the fact that Sebastian had revealed a lot of things that he hadn't been expecting to hear. He had honestly assumed that Bella had been the product of too much tequila and too few condoms, which made him feel like the world's biggest jerk, especially knowing what he knew now.

Blaine was already seeing a whole different side to Sebastian, but the sight of Sebastian crying made him forget about everything else and made him focus solely on Sebastian.

Acting on pure impulse, Blaine pulled Sebastian over to him and hugged him, just holding him and hugging him.

* * *

Cayleigh and Liv were kneeling on the bed in the guest room that, coincidentally, was located right next to Bella's room. Their ears were pressed against drinking glasses, which they held to the wall.

The girls had convinced Tyler and Cooper to watch _The Little Mermaid_ with Bella while they went to go spy on Sebastian and Blaine's conversation.

"They're not saying anything anymore!" Cayleigh complained, but was quickly shushed by Liv.

"They're having a moment!" Liv whispered excitedly.

While Cayleigh and Liv had to admit that they were secretly rooting for Blaine and Sebastian as a couple, they both knew that it would take some time before that happened.

Still, they couldn't help but internally squeal with delight that Sebastian was starting to open up to Blaine about more personal stuff.

* * *

**AN2: **I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Any comments/feedback/thoughts as to what happened in this chapter and/or what you think might happen in the upcoming chapters? Also, don't forget to review, thanks!


End file.
